Recording apparatus.



Patented Mar. 2, 1915.

INVENTOI? WITNESSES NORRIS PETERS C0,. PHOTO-LITH:J.. WASHINGTON. D. C

ROBERT S. BLAIR, OF NEW ROCHELLE, NEW YORK.

RECORDING APPARATUS.

Application filed August 14, 1907.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that 1, ROBERT S. BLAIR, a citizen of the United States,residing at New Rochelle, in the county of .Vestchester and State of NewYork, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Recording iilpparatus, of which the following is a full, clear, and exactdescription, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which itappertains to make and use the same.

This invention relates to recording apparatus and more particularly toworkmens tim recorders.

One of the objects thereof is to provide a simple and practical timerecorder susceptible of rapid use and adapted to form reliable records.

Another object is to provide simple means for positioning the recordreceiving mernber of a time recorder with a high degree of accuracy andyet permit ready insertion and removal thereof.

Another object is to provide efficient and reliable means for insuringagainst accidental or intentional misuse of a time recorder andfalsification of its records.

Other objects will be in part obvious and in part pointed outhereinafter.

The invention accordingly consists in the features of construction,combinations of elements, and arrangement of parts which will beexemplified in the mechanism hereinafter described and the scope of theapplication of which will be indicated in the following claims.

In the accompanying drawing in which is shown one of various possibleembodiments of this invention: Figure 1 is a sectional elevationthereof, certain parts being diagrammatically shown in order to avoidobscuring the disclosure. Fig. 2 is a cetailed view of a portion oflocking mechanism. Fig. 3 is a similar view of the same part taken fromthe reverse side. Fig. at is a similar view of another element of thelocking mechanism. Fig. 5 is a sectional plan of the card receivingmechanism shown immediately above the same in Fig. 1.

Similar reference characters refer to similar parts throughout theseveral figures of the drawing.

In order that certain features of this invention may be the more readilyunderstood, it may here be noted that in the use of time recorders inwhich a removable record card Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Mar. 2, 1915.

Serial No. 388,477.

is employed, it is often of prime importance that the card be placedprecisely in the desired position, as otherwise an orderly and accuraterecord is diflicult to obtain. It is also to be noted that the recordcard should vlso fit in the receiver in such a manner as to permit itsready insertion and quick withdrawal without the chance of tearing thesame. If it be attempted to attain these ends by gripping or justifyingthe card in a manner similar to that long known in the printing art itis found that not only is the mechanism required for this purposecomplicated and liable to derangement but its action is more or lessinexact and does not achieve the desired result. It may also be noted atthis point that although means may be provided in time recorders of thenature of that herein shown for automatically limiting the depth ofinsertion of a record card and thus preventing its being thrustdownwardly to an undue extent for the purpose of falsifying the records,this does not prevent the lifting of the card and thus misplacing therecord and forming it in a space dedicated to the record of another day.The above and other defects are obviated and many positive advantagesobtained in constructions of the nature of that hereinafter described.

Referring now to the accompanying drawing, there is shown in Fig. 1 acasing l of a time recorder of the so-called card type provided withtype wheels 3 disposed beneath an opening 2 formed in the casing. Thesetype wheels are adapted to print time or any function of time and may bedriven from clock-work in any desired manner, the details of thismechanism not being shown as they form no part of the present invention.

Mounted beneath the opening 2 and adapted to receive a record card 4 andhold the same in operative relation to the type wheels is a cardreceiver 5. This receiver comprises the horizontal straps 6 and 7,having formed at their ends the eyes 8 by which it is supported upon thevertical guide rods 9. The lateral card engaging members of the receiver10 and 11 are mounted as shown in a non-parallel and downwardlyconverging disposition, being connected in the present embodiment notonly by strap 6 but by a cross member 12. As clearly shown in thedrawings, the inclined portion of the card-receiver is preferably formedat an angle of less than 45 degrees with the direction of movement ofthe card in the receiver, and in this manner the card is firmly andaccurately positioned even though it be merely resting in the receiverwithout being pressed downwardly therein. It is to be understood thatthe members 10, 11 and 12 are of channel conformation and adapted toembrace the card as best indicated in Fig. 5 of the drawings. Securedtowthe straps 6 and 7 at one end of the same is a toothed member 13against which a hat spring 1 1 presses the roller 15. it will thus beseen that the card receiver may be moved in a vertical direction alongthe guide rod 9 and that the same is held in a. number of predeterminedpositions by the action of the roller 15 and its associated parts. It isalso to be noted that if it be desired to move the receiver in a lateraldirection, the same may readily be accomplished by providing theappropriate guide rods and it is to be noted that many features of thisinvention are adapted for use in a time recorder having a lateralmovement of the card receiver.

Considering now the means whereby the receiver is raised, there issecured to the straps 6 and 7 a rack 16 intermeshing with a pinion '17mounted upon a shaft 18 which may be j ournaled in bearings of anydesired form. This shaft passes through the casing 1 and has'looselymounted upon its end a crank 19 in the hollow hub 20 of which is coileda spring 21. Also mounted upon shaft 18 is a cylindrical indicator 22adapted by means of the matter formed thereon to indicate through anopening or window 23 the day of the week for which the card receiver isset. Also mounted upon shaft 18 is a disk 24:, the same being driven byclockwork in such manner as to complete a predetermined fraction of onerevolution every twenty-four hours and being loosely mount ed upon'theshaft to turn freely thereon but held against lateral movement as by asuitable collar. -This disk as best shown in Fig. a of the drawings isprovided with a concentric slot 25 having beveled ends and extendingabout one-seventh of the circumference of the disk. Mounted upon shaft18 adjacent disk 24 is a locking member 26 provided with a beveledabutment 29 adapted in certain positions to register with and fit intothe slot 25. Member 26 is keyed to the shaft 18 and slidable thereon andis urged toward the disk 2% as by the spiral spring 28. Mounted beneaththe shaft 18 is an actuating lever 30 by which the forming of the recordupon the record card is accomplished in any desired manner and shown foreX- ample in patent to Dey and Dey, No. 786,011, granted March 28, 1905,means for achieving this end being well known in this art.

Mounted adjacent lever 30 which is provided with a beveled lower edge isa swinging locking hook 31 having an abutment 32 adapted to engage therear face of the member 26 which is so formed as to provide seven raisedportions 27, the function of which will hereinafter be described indetail. A spring 33 is connected with the hook, 31 and tends to swingthesame away from the lever 30. i V

1 Recurring to the card receiver 5 there is mounted thereon at a pointat which the lower edge of the record card rests a lever 34 pivoted at35 and provided with the arm 36. Mounted adjacent this arm 36 isaswinging rod 37 having pivotal centers 38 and 39 and provided with aspring 20 normally urging same in such a direction as to force the arm36towart the card receiver and consequently raise the short inner end ofthe lever 3-1 upon which the card is to rest.- The rod 37 isconnectedwith a lock-.

ing rod 41 mounted in guides of any desired type and resting at its freeextremity against the locking hook 31 and holding the same in lookposition in the absence of a card in the card receiver.

The operation of the above described embodiment of this invention issubstantially as follows: A. record card may be inserted through theopening 2 into the card receiver 5 and upon the actuating lever 30 beingswung downwardly the same is forced against the type Wheels and a recordformed thereon in the well known manner. It is to be noted that the cardtapers downwardly to fit exactly the converging form ofthe receiver, andwhen it rests therein is held precisely in the desired position. Thebottom of the cardin this position rests in the embodiment shown withinthe cross member 12 but it is to be noted that this member may bedispensed with and many ofthe advantages of this feature of my inventionretained. Upon the impression being made the card may be quicklysnatched from the receiver without any tendency to bind therein,inasmuch as any upward movement loosens it in the receiver. The receiveris raised or lowered by a turning of the crank 19, the spring 21 beingplaced under such tension as to overcome the efiect of the spring 1i andsnap the receiver upwardly or downwardly one step at a time. It is to benoted, however that the printing or actuating lever 30 cannot be thrownand the record made with the hook 31 in the locking position shown andthe parts are so formed and disposed as to hold this hook in lookingposition through the abutment 32 whenever the abutment 29 is out ofregistry with the slot 35 or whenever the abutment 32 is upon one of theraised portions 2'. The disk 27 is so disposed moreo er as to bring oneof the raised portions 27 opposite the abutment 32 and throw the hook 31into locking position whenever the card receiver is in one of itspositions of rest and it wiil thus be seen that the only time duringwhich the instrument can be used with the card in one of itspredetermined stationary positions is when the abutment 29 fits withinthe slot 2-5 thus permitting the spring 28 to throw the looking memberto the right and release the hook 31. During the movement 0]": thereceiver, however, as the same is snapped from one position to anotherand the abutment 32 passes into the depressions between the raisedportions 27, the hook 31 is released and the use of the instrument isnot prevented by the locking mechanism. It is to be understood thatunless member 26 is set in proper position with respect to theclockcontrolled disk 24, a raised portion 27 will force the hook underthe printing lever and prevent use of the instrument. Hence the firstworkman in the morning must turn the crank until the abutment 29 entersthe slot 25 thus permitting the member :26 to release the printinglever, and this turning of crank 19 will set the card-receiving membersin such position that the record upon the card will be found in theproper space for the day upon which the record is made. Each day thedisk 2% is driven through substantially the angle subtended by the slot25 and each day the crank 19 must be turned through a correspondingangle and the record cards are correspondingly raised. There isprovided, however, in the illustrative embodiment of this inventionherein shown an auxiliary locking mechanism acting through the rod 41.This rod as above described is normally forced against the hook 31 bymeans of the spring a0 and holds it in locking position but is releasedupon a record card being inserted to its full depth whereupon its loweredge engages the inner end of the lever 34- and swings the arm 36upwardly, thus swinging the rod 37 to the right and releasing the hook31. It will thus be seen that it is prerequisite to the operation ofthis instrument that the card be inserted to its proper depth.

In order to avoid the chance of misinterpretation of certain terms usedin this description and the roliowing claims, it may here be noted thatby the expression prin ing mechanism is meant record forming mechanismof any character and that the expressions sides and bottom, or theirequivalents, are used in a purely relative sense and are intended tocover equivalent members irrespective of the disposition of the cardreceiver as a whole.

It will thus be seen that there is provided an instrument in which theseveral objects of this invention are achieved, and the above describedadvantages are among others present. The entire construction is simpleand inexpensive and is of an essentially prac tical nature.

As various possible embodiments of the several features of thisinvention might be made and as this embodiment might be changed in manyparticulars without departing from the scope of the invention, it is tobe understood that all matter contained in the above description orshown in the accompanying drawing is intended to he interpreted asillustrative and not in a limiting sense.

Having described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to protectby Letters Patent of the United States, is:

1. In a time recorder, in combination, printing means, means adapted tocontrol the position of a record card with respect to said printingmeans, a hand actuated device for causing the operation of said printingmeans, a lock coacting with said hand actuated device to prevent theoperation thereof, a clock driven member, and means adapted upon beingbrought into a predetermined relation to said clock driven member toproperly position said second means and release said lock.

2. In a time recorder, in combination, printing means, a verticallymovable device adapted to control the position of a card with respect tosaid printing means, a hand actuated lever, means connected with saidlever adapted to form an impression from said printing means, a lockcoacting with said lover, a clock driven member, means adapted uponbeing brought into a predetermined relation to said clock driven memberto correctly position a record card with respect to said printing meansand release said lock, and an indicating device adapted to register theday for which said card holding device is set.

3. In a time recorder, in combination, printing means, a movable cardreceiver having non-parallel non-yielding card engaging sides, and meansadapted to move said receiver to vary the position of a card thereinwith respect to said printing means.

4. In a time recorder, in combination, printing means, a movable cardreceiver having non-parallel card engaging sides rigidly held inposition, means adapted to move said receiver to vary the position of acard therein with respect to said printing means, and means adapted toguide said receiver in its movement with respect to said printing means,the non-parallel cardengaging sides being formed at an angle of lessthan 45 degrees with the length of a card in said receiver.

5. In a time recorder, in combination, printing means, a device havingnon-parallel sides adapted to engage opposite edges of a record card andhold the same in position and means to vary the position of said cardwith respect to said printing means with said card in engagement withsaid nonparallel sides and in operative relation to said printing means.

6. In a time recorder, in combination, printing means, a record cardhaving an inclined edge, and a card receiver provided with anon-yielding inclined member adapted to engage said inclined edge andfit the same while holding said card in operative relation to saidprinting means.

7. In a time recorder, in combination, printing means, a card receiverhaving both sides inclined and adapted to receive a record card providedwith inclined sides and hold the same in operative relation to saidprinting means.

8. In a time recorder, in combination, printing means, and a cardreceiver having an inclined side adapted to receive a record cardprovided with an inclined side and having a member adapted to engage thebottom of a card in engagement with and substantially fitting saidinclined side and hold the same in a position adjacent said printingmeans.

9. In a time recorder, in combination, a record card receiver, thelateral card engaging members of which are rigidly held spaced one from.another at a greater distance at the topor entering end of the receiverthan at the opposite end thereof whereby the card is readily fitted andaccurately positioned there between.

10. In a time recorder, a record card receiver, the lateral cardengaging members of which are held against rotary movement and convergein a direction away from the entering end of the receiver and theopposite end of which is'provided with a member adapted to engage thebottom of a card substantially fitting said lateral members.

11. In a time recorder, a card receiver, one card-engaging side ofwhichis shaped to wedge a card firmly. against the opposite side and limitits downward movement in the receiver.

12. In a timerecorder, in combination, a card receiver, onecard-engaging side of which is shaped to'wedge a card firmly against theoppposite side and limit its downward movement in the receiver, printingmeans, and means adapted to move said inclined member to vary theposition of said card with respect to said printing means.

18. In a time recorder, in combination, printing means, a card receiverhaving an inclined side and adapted to hold a card engaging said side ina position adjacent said printing means, and a record card hav ing aninclined side and adapted to fit said receiver, said inclined portionsbeing formed I at an angle of less than 45 degrees with the length ofthe card-receiver while in operative relation to said printing means.

14. In a time recorder, in combination, printing means, means adapted todetermine the position of a record card with respect to said printingmeans and limit the downward movement of said card to variouspredetermined points, clock actuated means adapted periodically to movesaid limiting means throughout a predetermined space, means adapted toactuate said printing means, and means operative with said limitingmeans at any of said points adapted normally to prevent the actuation ofsaid printing means and to permit actuation of the same upon 'a recordcard being placed in a predetermined relation to said second mentionedmeans.

15. In a time recorder, in combination, a printing wheel, a cardsupporting device having a card engaging member inclined with respect tothe plane of said printing wheel, and means adapted to vary the positionof said card with respect to said printing wheel and maintain it inengagement with said' inclined member. J

16. In a time recorder, in combination, a 9 card receiver, means adaptedto form a reca 0rd upon a card within said receiver, means i adapted toadjust the position of said receiver with respect to said record formingmeans, means adapted to lock said record forming means, and meansoperative in all positions of said receiver adapted to release said lookupon a card being inserted therein to a predetermined depth.

In testimony whereof I aiiix my signature, in the presence of twoWitnesses.

ROBERT S. BLAIR.

I Vitnesses:

R. A. FARNHAM, W'. S. FARNHAM.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressingthe Commissioner of Patents,

Washington, D. G.

